Founded by Red Light Management’s Coran Capshaw and Bruce Flohr, Greenlight has deep roots in the music and entertainment industry. With corporate partners that encompass artist management, concert promotion, record labels, and direct-to-fan engagement, Greenlight is an ideal fit for Live Nation's advertising and sponsorship unit, which was its most profitable division last year (1). The details of the transaction have not been disclosed.

March 2016: McCafferty & Company has announced the addition of its Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality (AR/VR) Primer to its research catalog. Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality (AR/VR) is an emerging industry that has received increased investment in recent years. AR/VR is a large potential market opportunity and can be used for many different applications due to recent technology developments that have made AR/VR products economically feasible.

The AR/VR Executive Summary is available for public download on the McCafferty & Co. website, using the firm's secure research portal. Details on how to purchase the full primer are expected to be released in the upcoming weeks.

Stream Market is the definitive global market and conference for the original online video industry. The conference will be held on June 6 - 7th, 2016 at the Fairmont Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica. For more information and registration, please visit Stream Market.

Important Industry News

Top Developments Influencing Tech & Media

Investors Stuck on Emojis and Stickers in Mobile Messaging Market

March 2016: The mobile messaging ad-on market has experienced a recent influx of investment. In March, Fortune announced that the image messaging app Snapchat acquired Bitstrips, Inc for $100 million in cash and stocks. Bitstrips allows users to create customized avatars and cartoons that can be shared on social media. Bitstrips’ popular Bitmoji app takes your customized content to mobile messaging with the use of a special smartphone keyboard, much like the emoticon keyboards for Android and iOS (1).

The mounting value of mobile messaging and its potential for add-ons is also witnessed in the recent valuation of Giphy, an online library of GIFs. After the company raised $55 million in a series C funding round in February of this year, the “Google of GIFs” was valued at $300 million (2).

(1) Fortune (2) TechCrunch

Intel Acquires sports-centered VR Startup, Replay, with applications both on and off the field

March 2016: Intel Corp has announced that it plans to acquire a Tel Aviv-based virtual reality company, Replay Technologies. Replay specializes in the digitalization of sports using 3D video technology. This ties in with Intel’s plans for what it calls "immersive sports," a new category of sports entertainment with the ability to capture, analyze, and share data, according to Intel SVP Wendell Brooks (1).

The 360-degree rotating video technology would be entertaining for at-home viewers, but could also be used to help athletes and coaches in off-the-field training. With the majority of VR investment focused on in-home applications, such as TC Vive and Oculus Rift headsets, the out-of-home use for the technology may show even greater potential.

The specifics of the deal have not been disclosed but Israeli media has reported that Intel is expected to pay between $150 million to $170 million for the startup (1).

(1) WSJ

Activision Blizzard Acquires eSports broadcaster Major League Gaming

January 2016: Game publisher Activision Blizzard has purchased the popular producer and broadcaster of live videogame competitions, Major League Gaming (MLG). The $46 million cash deal grants Activision MLG’s assets and talent pool of about 60 full-time employees. The partnership has provided Activision with the tools to expand their new “eSports” division, which ran its first-ever pro-arena eSports event (CS:GO) in early April (1).

The MLG Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Major Championship, which hosted teams competing for a $1 million prize pool, set new viewership records for competitive gaming. Audiences generated 71 million video views, watched a record-breaking 45 million hours of live broadcast and set a new record of 1.6 million concurrent viewers across OTT, web, mobile and in-game streaming during this year’s event (2). The purchase of eSports broadcaster MLG by a game publisher may be evidence of major game publishers vying for more direct control over the companies that broadcast play of their games (as an example, consider if the NFL outright owned a network like ESPN).

(1) Fortune (2) MLG

Personnel News

William Eide Joins McCafferty & Company as Director

March 2016: McCafferty & Company welcomed William Eide as a Director, specializing in M&A, capital raising and financial advisory assignments across media and technology. Will joins McCafferty from Metro Goldwyn Mayer, Inc (MGM), a leading film and television studio based in Beverly Hills, CA, where he held the role of SVP of Corporate Development . Prior to MGM, Will served as the Vice President in TMT Investment Banking at Macquarie Capital and an Associate at Houlihan Lokey in Los Angeles.